This invention generally relates to a vehicle communication system including a trainable transmitter that emits a communication signal through the antenna that is associated with the AM/FM radio.
The variety of features and amenities provided with vehicles continually increases. With advances in technologies, and corresponding decreases in cost, vehicle manufacturers are including more and more capabilities and luxuries into vehicles. One drawback associated with this increase in features is that the vehicle owner must utilize a variety of transmitters or other devices. For example, a typical car owner may have one transmitter to communicate with a garage door opener, a second transmitter for communicating with a home security system, a third transmitter for communicating with the vehicle anti-theft system and a separate cellular telephone or other portable communication system. Handling all of these transmitters and finding a convenient place for them within a vehicle can be annoying and, at times, distracting from the task of driving a vehicle.
Another drawback associated with current vehicle communication systems is that antennas for transmitters and receivers are typically located in hidden places within the vehicle. Vehicle manufacturers require communication device antennas to be hidden from view. This introduces a variety of problems including reduced signal transmission caused by the surrounding vehicle structure. Further, because space within a vehicle is limited, antennas and transmitter or receiver components must be relatively small, which introduces complexities and undesirable costs.
It would be useful to provide a vehicle communication system that is capable of handling communications with a variety of peripheral devices located remotely from the vehicle. This invention provides such a system. The invention includes a trainable transmitter that is capable of learning and transmitting a variety of communication signals to communicate with a variety of peripheral, remotely located devices. In a system designed according to this invention, the trainable transmitter is selectively coupled with the antenna that is associated with the AM/FM radio receiver.